Knee decisions — 2017

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for further development, including obtaining treatment records from his left total knee arthroplasty (total knee replacement).

The Veteran's right knee arthritis is found to be proximately due to or the result of his service-connected left knee disability, and thus service connection for this condition is granted.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to address the Veteran's left knee disability and low back disability.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection of a bilateral knee disability and granted service connection based on direct evidence showing that his current condition is related to his military service.

The Board has determined that there is no evidence of a right knee disorder during service or for many years thereafter, and the Veteran's current right knee condition is not shown to be related to his military service.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including obtaining private medical records and arranging an orthopedic examination.

Service connection for a back condition was denied in May 2008 and remains denied.,Service connection for bilateral foot disorder has been reopened but remains denied. Evidence received since the November 1992 rating decision is new and material, raising a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim.

The Veteran's service-connected major depression disorder has been granted a 30 percent rating, effective October 29, 2011.

The Board has ordered the case to be remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and verifying service periods.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to assess the current severity of his right knee disorder and any related functional loss. The TDIU claim is also inextricably intertwined with the other issues.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current diagnosis of left knee arthritis is related to an in-service motor vehicle accident, and thus service connection for this condition is granted.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for a low back disorder and left knee disorder, finding that there was no clear and unmistakable evidence to rebut the presumption of soundness at entry into service and that any current conditions were not related to military service.

The Veteran's service-connected musculoskeletal disabilities caused or contributed to his increased frequency of falls, which led to a hip replacement and subsequent infections. The Board finds that the service-connected conditions are the principal cause of death.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of his bilateral knee, back, hip, and right hand disorders. The examiner will assess whether it is at least as likely as not that these conditions were incurred in or aggravated during service.

The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection, increased ratings, and TDIU were denied. The Board found that the earliest date of entitlement was January 31, 2011.,VA regulations do not allow for an earlier effective date for hepatitis B as it did not meet the criteria for a 10 percent evaluation prior to January 31, 2011.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral knee pain and a rating in excess of 20 percent for his low back disorder. The claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder was remanded but not addressed in this decision.

The Board has remanded the case due to a need for additional development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's left knee disability and whether his service-connected right knee disability caused or aggravated it.

The Board found no clear and unmistakable error in the October 1956 rating decision that denied service connection for right knee disability. The Veteran's claim was not granted due to a rebuttable presumption of soundness, which was supported by evidence from his military records.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including a VA examination to assess the severity of his left knee disability and ensure proper range of motion testing.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for arthritis was granted. He received initial schedular ratings of 30 percent for his right eye aphakia and left eye nuclear sclerotic cataract, which were increased to 50 percent effective January 6, 2009. The Veteran also received a compensable rating (20%) for his residual right knee scar. Additionally, he was granted TDIU prior to December 17, 2008.